The Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA), the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA), and the Directors Guild of Canada (DGC) have submitted a joint petition to the Minister of Canadian Heritage asking her to set aside, or refer back, the CRTC's Group Licence Renewal decisions for large television broadcasters.

"Across the production sector, Canada's creator community shares deep concerns about the damaging impact of these decisions.

"An independent analysis commissioned by the CMPA found that the CRTC's decision to decrease the required amount broadcasters must spend on Canadian Programs of National Interest (PNI) will likely result in a drop of more than $900 million in production volume, causing a cumulative economic reduction of $1.15 billion in GDP over the five-year period during which the broadcasters' licences will be in place.

"If these decisions are allowed to stand, the required PNI spend for channels operated by Rogers, Corus, and Bell will fall to just five percent, having a severe negative impact on the production of Canadian television content and productivity of the sector as a whole.

"In addition to reduced PNI spending, the joint petition objects to the CRTC's decision to remove evening exhibition requirements for the broadcasters' discretionary services and the negative consequences of the regulator's failure to address the erosion of independently-produced programming.

The CRTC’s role in the digital economy

Rebel Media sounds off

Squibs

Montreal media columnist Fagstein reports that Bell Media radio stations are now unavailable in the TuneIn streaming app. Bell Media says the cut was not initiated by them, leaving die-hard network station listeners to download BM’s affiliated iHeartRadio app.

— Too good not to share: Reviewing “Valerian” in The New York Times, A. O. Scott said watching the film was akin to “crushing a DVD of “The Phantom Menace” into a fine powder, tossing in some Adderall and Ecstasy and a pinch of cayenne pepper and snorting the resulting mixture while wearing a virtual reality helmet in a Las Vegas karaoke bar.”

— Nearly $50B, or 67% of Google’s net digital ad revenue, will come from mobile in 2017, up from $38B in 2016, according to eMarketer. Google’s mobile ad revenue grew about 32% in 2017 — Recode

— UK- and Ireland-based Virgin TV has acquired rights to 30 titles from DHX Media’s library. In total, Virgin bought 615 half-hours of content from the Canadian media firm.

DHX recently finalized its US$345M acquisition of the entertainment division of Iconix Brand Group, giving it an 80% controlling interest in Peanuts and 100% of Strawberry Shortcake, adding 340 half-hours of content to the company’s library — Kidscreen

Worth Noting

The New York Times’ bid to conquer Canada

The “failing” New York Times, as Donald Trump has dubbed it, is failing upwards in Canada at a dizzying rate. It has seen explosive growth in subscriptions here, its largest market outside the U.S. — and now rivals and perhaps substantially exceeds The Globe and Mail in digital subscription dollars (and digital advertising dimes) in this country — Paul Adams, iPolitics

Alexandre Cazes was just 25, but according to US government documents he was the alleged mastermind behind AlphaBay, the most profitable dark web marketplace in the world, and a millionaire who owned luxury cars and multiple properties in Thailand, Cyprus and Antigua — Andrea Bellemare, CBC News

To many, the Roomba is a cute little robot friend that no one but dogs would consider to be a potential menace. But for the last couple of years, the robovacs have been quietly mapping homes to maximize efficiency. Now, the device’s makers plan to sell that data to smart home device manufacturers, turning the friendly robot into a creeping, creepy little spy — Rhett Jones, Gizmodo

By conventional standards, Anthony Scaramucci is unqualified for the position of White House director of communications. By Trump’s standards, his resume is unmatched. Two months ago, Mr. Scaramucci was the subject of a CNN report that the network was not only forced to retract but which became so discounted that three journalists were dismissed. To Mr. Trump, there could be no finer set of credentials – a consigliere with kills to his credit — Scott Reid, The Globe & Mail

A year and a half after its daily paper stopped printing, Guelph has become a living laboratory for the loss of traditional local media – a rising risk in communities across Canada — Simon Houpt, The Globe & Mail

I asked Moving The Needle readers to share their stories about the working culture in the fashion industry and I've been overwhelmed by your responses. Many of you reached out to share your personal--often painful--experiences about how disposable you feel and how hard it is to hold on to your job — Liz Segran, Fast Company

The “failing” New York Times, as Donald Trump has dubbed it, is failing upwards in Canada at a dizzying rate. It has seen explosive growth in subscriptions here, its largest market outside the U.S. — and now rivals and perhaps substantially exceeds The Globe and Mail in digital subscription dollars (and digital advertising dimes) in this country — Paul Adams, iPolitics

Alexandre Cazes was just 25, but according to US government documents he was the alleged mastermind behind AlphaBay, the most profitable dark web marketplace in the world, and a millionaire who owned luxury cars and multiple properties in Thailand, Cyprus and Antigua — Andrea Bellemare, CBC News

David Farrell

David Farrell has worked at the forefront of Canadian music journalism for over 30 years, founding and editing The Record in the 1980s, before launching FYI Music News...